In this article, the author presents three themes that can form the basis for exciting world language instruction in Spanish, French, and Chinese at any grade level. These three themes (the prehistoric world; endangered species; and space exploration) use basic science as a context for communication that generates student excitement and enthusiasm…

This article describes how the author makes the story of "Don Quixote de la Mancha" come alive to fifth graders in her Spanish class. She rewrote several scenes from the novel into short plays that were appropriate to the students' interests and to their novice-high proficiency level. The author chose a combination of scenes that offer…

This article discusses the author's use of a performance-based evaluation in his fifth grade Spanish class in a K-5 public elementary school located in Princeton, New Jersey. The author realized the need to break the old testing paradigm and discover a new way of demonstrating student language acquisition since the traditional tests did not seem…

When designing a foreign language methods course, one important consideration should be the manner in which theory is connected with practical experiences, thus giving students an opportunity to use newly-gained knowledge in an actual classroom setting. Most children in Delaware's public schools are not exposed to foreign languages until they…

The American Council on Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) annually presents the Melba Woodruff Award to an exemplary foreign language program in the nation. This year at the ACTFL conference in Baltimore, MD, the Eisenhower International School received this award for its outstanding immersion programs. International student exchanges at the…